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NFL free agents slowed, not stopped by Achilles injuries

Atlanta Falcons defensive tackle Corey Peters had one game remaining in the best season of his NFL career. He was less than three months away from free agency and then … snap. Peters tore his right Achilles

Atlanta Falcons defensive tackle Corey Peters had one game remaining in the best season of his NFL career. He was less than three months away from free agency and then … snap.

Peters tore his right Achilles tendon in a loss at San Francisco on Dec. 23, sending him into surgery and six to eight months of rehabilitation. He expects to be ready for training camp but is still on crutches with a walking boot as the clock ticks down to the market opening March 11.

"It's just devastating, man," Peters told USA TODAY Sports recently. "You work so hard to try to put yourself in the best position and then something like that – with Achilles injuries, it's no real explanation for it. It just can happen."

It may not give NFL teams much pause, though, considering the success of several high-profile players who have returned from Achilles tears in recent years and quickly regained top form.

Just the past two weeks, Baltimore Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs and Philadelphia Eagles tackle Jason Peters – who both suffered Achilles tears in the spring of 2012 – cashed in on their excellent 2013 seasons with lucrative contract extensions.

Denver Broncos receiver Demaryius Thomas, who tore his Achilles' during a workout in February 2011, had consecutive 90-catch seasons in 2012 and '13. San Francisco 49ers receiver Michael Crabtree had a 125 yards receiving in a January playoff game, 7½ months after surgery.

"For those guys who do tear it, it's very much expected the player will be able to come back and still compete," said Dr. Matthew Matava, a spokesman for the American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons and the St. Louis Rams' head team physician. "It was never a death sentence. But I don't think it scares teams off as much as perhaps it used to."

The Achilles tendon attaches the calf muscle to the heel bone, driving the normal transfer in the walking motion from the heel to the toes and pushing off with the forefoot. Most injuries are non-contact.

A 2010 study by four Duke University orthopedists found 31 acute Achilles tendon ruptures in NFL players between 1997 and 2002. Twenty-one (67.7%) returned to play an average of 11 months later, with significant decreases in games played and productivity over the following three seasons.

"You have to really take those (numbers) with a grain of salt, because it depends on so many factors," Matava said. "For those players that don't have any sort of contractual issues or they're bubble guys to begin with, I would expect a much higher return to play rate."

The procedure to repair a torn Achilles hasn't changed much in the past decade, other than the sutures being stronger and smaller: Surgeons make an incision, weave the two sides of the tendon and pull it together.

But rehab has become more aggressive to avoid the issues of ankle stiffness and calf atrophy, rebuilding range of motion and strength without compromising the success rate. Athletes who undergo surgery, as any NFL player would, have a re-injury rate of 3%, Matava said.

One NFL personnel director, speaking on condition of anonymity for competitive reasons, told USA TODAY Sports teams are less concerned "to a degree" these days about Achilles injuries, with timing and its impact on return date a factor in free-agent decisions.

"Science and rehab are more and more advanced every few years," the personnel director said. "Age, conditioning, body type come into play as well. The better those statuses are, the better chance of quality return."

Other starters suffering torn Achilles last season included New England Patriots nose tackle Vince Wilfork and Cincinnati Bengals cornerback Leon Hall, who tore his left Achilles midway through 2011 and the right one this past October.

Peters' former teammate in Atlanta, cornerback Brent Grimes, settled for a one-year, $5.5 million contract with the Miami Dolphins last April coming off his Achilles injury in September 2012 – and was so good he'll reenter the market next month as a coveted target.

That could help free agents-to-be such as Peters, who has 57 career starts (including playoffs) and posted five sacks last season before the injury.

"It's kind of a wait and see mode," Peters said. "I'm confident that me being ready to go by training camp is very possible. From everything that I've been told by doctors at all of my checkups, I believe I'll be ready to go for opening day.

"I'm a very positive person. I'm pretty sure that something will come about and hopefully, my film can speak for itself."